Australia this week sanctioned 60 ocean vessels with ties to Russia's shadow fleet, the group of ships helping the country evade sanctions on transported oil and other goods. The designations mark the first time Australia has sanctioned Russian shadow fleet ships, the country's Office of the Minister for Foreign Affairs said, adding that the "sanctions reinforce Australia’s consistent commitment to ensuring Russia, and those enabling its illegal invasion of Ukraine, face consequences." The ministry said the ships use "deceptive practices" to hide their cargo, "including flag-hopping, disabling tracking systems, and operating with inadequate insurance."
The U.K. issued a threat assessment June 18 for art market participants and high-value dealers to address Russian sanctions violation risks in the art industry. The Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation said it's "highly likely that high value goods" owned by sanctioned parties in the U.K. haven't been reported to OFSI, and it's "likely" that Russian sanctioned parties and their enablers have dealt with high-value goods in the U.K. in "breach of asset freeze prohibitions."
Canada this week announced a host of new sanctions against Russia, designating 77 people, 39 entities and 201 vessels and imposing new export and import restrictions on industrial goods, dual-use technologies and more.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control this week sanctioned five Mexico-based leaders of Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generacion, which the agency said is a "brutally violent" cartel that helps traffic fentanyl and other illegal drugs into the U.S. The designations target CJNG’s leader, Ruben Oseguera Cervantes, and senior officials Julio Alberto Castillo Rodriguez, Gonzalo Mendoza Gaytan, Audias Flores Silva and Ricardo Ruiz Velasco. Each of the cartel members has been previously designated by OFAC except for Ruiz, who's the prime suspect in the recent murder of Mexican influencer Valeria Marquez during a live TikTok broadcast.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control this week renewed a Russia-related general license that authorizes certain transactions related to crude oil originating from the Sakhalin-2 project, an oil and gas development business based in Russia, as long as the Sakhalin-2 byproduct is solely for importation into Japan. General License 55D, which replaces 55C (see 2411210020), authorizes those transactions through Dec. 19. The license was scheduled to expire June 28.
As the Bureau of Industry and Security asks for more funding from Congress to improve its enforcement and technological capabilities, the agency could benefit from more information about controlled exports leaving third countries, said Matt Borman, a former senior BIS official. He also stressed the importance of the U.S. carefully calibrating any new export controls, and said its current semiconductors restrictions have successfully slowed China from producing the most advanced chips.
China's Foreign Ministry this week objected to Taiwan's recent decision to add Huawei and SMIC to Taiwan's Entity List (see 2506160008), and it criticized the U.S. for potentially pushing Taiwan toward the move.
A Venezuelan national and a U.S. citizen were arrested on June 13 and charged with violating U.S. sanctions on Venezuela by selling "chemical catalysts, industrial equipment, and associated services" to sanctioned Venezuelan state-owned steel mills and petrochemical companies, DOJ announced. The Venezuelan national, Juan Carlos Cairo-Padron, and the U.S. citizen, Thomas Fortinberry, both face a maximum of 20 years in prison for sanctions and money laundering counts and 10 years in prison for smuggling.
Ten Senate Democrats, including Senate Foreign Relations Committee ranking member Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., urged the State Department to retain the staff and programs of the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor (DRL), whose duties include administering sanctions under the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act.
The Senate is getting closer to formally considering a bill that would impose a wide range of sanctions on Russia and its supporters if Moscow refuses to reach a peace deal with Ukraine, Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said June 17.